Out Of The Blue
by kalabomb
Summary: Ginny thought she knew exactly the kind of man she wanted, but doesn’t realize it when he walks right into her life. In the form of Draco Malfoy.
1. Chapter 1

A/N This is my first story, and I have to admit, I have no idea where to go with this. The idea popped into my head and just wouldn't leave, though unfortunately it didn't pop in fully formed! So your ideas about where you'd like this story to go would be very appreciated!

Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling, not me. Applicable to all chapters.

Ginny Weasley has dated her fair share of men. Not an excessive amount that made her seem as though she had commitment issues, but merely that she had not yet met "the one" and is confident she'll find him. At some point.

But her dating experience has meant that she now knew exactly the type of man she wanted; someone she could respect, not look up to as though in awe – there's a difference. Someone who knew what he wanted, but not headstrong (so that she was able to get her way too at times), but also not lacking in opinion or judgment (she would surely die of boredom with such a man – in fact she nearly had, with her last boyfriend). Someone with a sense of humor, but also knew when to take himself seriously. But most importantly, someone she could feel at ease with. Someone who was just as happy having a night in with a glass of wine and out at a fancy restaurant for dinner. And someone who could cook wouldn't hurt either. And good looking.

Yes, there were many boxes in need of ticking, but she didn't think she was being unreasonable. Surely such a man exists; she merely has not found him yet. And boy will she. Because if there was anything Ginny Weasley was sure of, was that she was too much of a romantic to live the rest of her life with someone who was "adequate". She wanted to be head over heels in love, to be so consumed in love that nothing else mattered. As far as she was concerned, "adequate" would be her worst nightmare.

##

Ginny Weasley was leaning on the table in front of her, sipping and savoring her champagne. She was glad that this party served muggle alcohol as she found wizard alcohol to be much too potent, "_I'd like to be able to make my way home tonight, thanks_" she thought, "_and not break these new 6-inch heels…_" she added as an afterthought. She wasn't not enjoying this party; it was just that she didn't know anyone there. And there was nothing worse than a party that you have to attend out of obligation, and not recognize a single face while you're there.

Ginny had just swallowed the last sip of her champagne, and contemplating whether or not to grab another, when she recognized a familiar face approaching her, breaking his way through a crowd of people clad in dresses and dress robes.

"Weasley," Draco Malfoy said cheerfully with a ghost of a smirk on his face. He was dressed in very immaculately tailored black dress robes and looked impeccable, Ginny hated to admit.

Ginny turned around in search of another Weasley Malfoy could have been referring too. All her brothers (with the exception of Ron) had all married and started families of their own. It was hard to keep track of them all, and so it was very possible that one of them happened to be at this party too, standing right behind her. After all, she had not expected to run into Draco Malfoy tonight either, and yet here he was.

Nope, no sight or red hair anywhere behind her. So he _had_ been addressing her. Odd. Draco lifted his eyebrows in question as to why she had turned around after he called out her name. There was a hint of amusement on his face.

"You'd never said my name in such a cheerful manner all throughout Hogwarts, I was just checking there wasn't another Weasley behind me you could have been calling out to," Ginny said in reply, as though the answer had been obvious.

"I daresay you would know if any of your brothers were attending this party also?" Draco questioned, "and that they were in such friendly terms with me?"

"I'm not their keeper, Malfoy. They don't know every little detail about what I do, and nor them, I," Ginny said, wondering where this conversation was leading, "and why _did_ you sound so cheerful to see me?"

"I was just glad to see a familiar face, even one I hadn't seen in 7 years," Malfoy shrugged, "The people at this party are amazingly dull."

"You've got that right," Ginny said in reply, wishing she had more champagne and resting her empty flute back on the table in front of her.

"Care for another drink?"

"-Please," Ginny said, slightly taken aback. Was Malfoy being thoughtful just now? And with that he was out of her sight in search for more alcohol. This left Ginny with a few minutes to ponder what on earth had just happened. Malfoy had said he was glad to see a familiar face from their Hogwarts days, but nothing about the fact that they had a less than amicable relationship back then. "_Far from it actually,"_ Ginny thought, suppressing a laugh as she remembered a particularly good Bat Bogey Hex she had aimed at him during her 4th year.

It was as though their entire history had not even occurred, though Ginny was not complaining; 24 years old was a little old to still be holding school grudges. Still, this was Malfoy, and she really couldn't put anything past him.

With perfect timing Draco reappeared across the tiny but tall table, perfect for resting your drink while standing, and once again completing a picture of a matching couple; with his dark robes and Ginny's black knee-length dress, the two looked like they had planned their outfits together tonight. He thought she looked incredible, as he handed her one of the two champagne flutes he was holding. She had her long red hair loose over her shoulder, giving an effortless air to her appearance, though still looking incredibly put together.

"Thanks," Ginny smiled.

Quite unsure what to do next, Ginny took a sip of her cold champagne. Draco did the same, and said, "_Life_. Odd name for a magazine," trying to strike up conversation.

"Well it is a lifestyle magazine. I'd say that _Lifestyle_ would have been a worse choice," Ginny replied, still unsure what Malfoy's motives were tonight. Still, she was glad for the company, there really is nothing worse than spending a party entirely by your lonesome.

"Touché," Draco laughed.

Still Ginny was unresponsive in this conversation, sure she answered his questions, but didn't initiate anything; she was still wary of his intentions. Draco noticed this and tried again.

"So what brings you to this shindig?"

"I'm decorating Mariana and Rudolfo's new townhouse. I'm their interior designer. I suppose she thought I'd find the company at _Life_'s one-year anniversary party entertaining and insisted I come. Though unfortunately that didn't end up being the case in reality." Ginny replied.

"You'd think Mariana would be able to decorate her own home, being the editor of _Life,_" Draco replied thoughtfully.

Ginny laughed, "Yes, you'd think so wouldn't you? But no, Mariana is great, I've known her for years, and we have the same aesthetic. Plus, I don't think Rudolfo would have done very well if there wasn't another person to take his side once and a while when Mariana gets a little too strong headed with her outrageous ideas."

"Ah yes, I'm sure. So interior design, huh? That's an interesting career choice."

"Well you would know all about interior design wouldn't you, Malfoy? Living in Malfoy Manor where everything is exactly where it's been for centuries," Ginny said a little defensively. She had enough grief from her mother about not having a "proper" job. She didn't need it from _Malfoy_ as well.

"God no I don't live in Malfoy Manor. Do you really think that lowly of me, Weasley? Living with my mother at 25 in a three-century year old house? No, I have my own flat here in London. One I decorated quite tastefully myself actually."

"Expensive is not a style Malfoy."

Again Draco laughed in reply, he was beginning to enjoy this conversation very much; the littlest Weasley had some wit to her.

"And why are you here Malfoy? I didn't know you ran with this crowd."

"I'm looking to do some business with Rudolfo, though he isn't too keen and still needs plenty of persuasion. Still, I'm optimistic. I can be very persuasive, given enough time." Draco said, moving slightly to his left, and leaned on the table in front of him, making him eye level with Ginny.

Just then Ginny heard Rudolfo calling her, saying, "Ginny! Here you are, you must see this wonderful light fixture. I think it would be amazing over the staircase –" and he was startled at the sight of Draco, who was smirking slightly as Rudolfo said, rather unenthusiastically, and thus capturing Ginny's attention, "Ah, Mr Malfoy," at which Draco stood up straighter and nodded, "I wasn't aware you'd be joining us at this little party."

"I received an invitation from your secretary last week, so I assume I was invited."

"Ah, yes. Alicia, huh? Must speak to her," Rudolfo mumbled, "Anyway, do you mind me stealing Miss Weasley here for just a second? There's something over here I'm sure she'll find just delightful."

"Sure, sure, just as long as you allow me to steal you for a couple of minutes afterwards,"

"Ah. Well, yes, I suppose that's fair. Come, Ginny" and Ginny left, her face falling slightly, bust still smiling nonetheless and followed Rudolfo towards the back of the room. Draco, having not missed her expression, chuckled and once again leaned his elbows on the table. He had sensed that the last thing Ginny wanted to do tonight was work; she looked like she could use a night to unwind.

##

Draco stood at his table with 2 empty champagne flutes and was now moving on to firewhiskey when Ginny reappeared looking relieved though also carrying an amused expression, without Rudolfo. "Took your time," Draco said.

"Rudolfo was quite keen to avoid you at all costs. After showing me that light, he showed me a myriad of other things that would all look horrible in his house, and he obviously knew this. He was just waiting until someone else spotted him and whisked him away elsewhere before he could talk to you," Ginny laughed, "You really weren't invited here tonight were you?

"No, I was. His secretary gave me an invitation," Draco said, leaving Ginny quite taken aback, she had been so sure Malfoy had gatecrashed after seeing the look on Rudolfo's face. "After quite a bit of flirting though, to her credit," Draco smirked, eliciting a laugh and eyebrow raise from Ginny "_That was more Malfoy's style,_" Ginny thought.

"No, I am not above using my charm to get what I want, Weasley," Draco continued, and again Ginny laughed.

"So what is it about Rudolfo that has you so keen on doing business with him?" Ginny asked, genuinely curious and now enjoying Draco's company more and more.

"To put simply, he's rich," Draco said, and Ginny raised her eyebrows again, she hadn't expected him to be so blunt. "Now don't give me that look, that's generally the trait you look for in a potential investor," Draco said.

And as if to redeem himself, he continued, "Rudolfo isn't interested in doing business with a 25 year-old, even if I am the CEO of Malfoy Incorporated. Though I don't blame him. In his eyes, I'm still a toddler playing in a pool much too big for himself and getting in over my head. Had my father still been in charge, I'm sure we wouldn't be having this problem. But Rudolfo is not stupid, and he has a great team working for him. He knows that this is not an opportunity to pass up but doesn't want to seem too eager. So at least for a little while longer, I have to play his game. Though there's no reason I can't throw him a curveball once and a while," Draco smirked.

"Like tonight."

"Like tonight. Precisely."

Ginny had to admit, Malfoy had some balls. Rudolfo Kingston may seem to not take himself too seriously at times, but when it came to business he had amazing instincts, and thus his high standing in the business community. Rudolfo Kingston was not someone you messed with, especially if you want something from him, like Draco did. Though Ginny suspected Draco knew this, and that was precisely the reason he was acting the way he was; it was catching Rudolfo's attention. Not to mention it was a very Malfoy-like thing to do.

"Well you've got balls Malfoy, I'll give you that," Ginny said.

"Why thank you, Weasley. High praise," lifting his glass in a show of thanks.

And Ginny laughed again. She had been doing that a lot tonight, which surprised her. She had expected to spend an appropriate amount of time at this party, not too short to seem impolite, but not any more than was necessary, and expected not to enjoy any part of it. But she was actually beginning to enjoy the night. "_With Draco Malfoy of all people,_" Ginny thought.

"Well I can see that Rudolfo will try his very hardest to avoid me for the rest of the night, so there's not much reason to stay any longer," Draco said, as he caught Rudolfo glancing at him and scurrying to the other side of the room. "Would you care to grab a coffee?"

"Sure," Ginny said, quite glad for the invitation, she was enjoying Draco's company to say goodbye after such a short period of time, "Though I'd have to say goodbye to Mariana first."

"Of course. As a matter of fact, she's not far behind you right now."

Ginny turned around and caught Mariana's eye, who smiled and quickly finished her conversation with a colorfully dressed eccentric wizard as Ginny made her way to her.

"Ginny! I do hope you've had a marvelous time tonight, and who _is_ that handsome blonde man with you? I didn't know you were bringing a date, not that I mind, obviously, but I would have liked to hear about it," Mariana chastised.

"Oh, no, he's not my date, he's an old friend from Hogwarts. Draco Malfoy. He's actually looking to do some business with Rudolfo."

"Ah, yes, Malfoy, Rudolfo's mentioned him. Very persistent young man. Apparently has very little experience but has incredible instincts, done wonderful things for his company. Though Rudolfo's never mentioned how good looking the boy was."

Ginny laughed and replied, "Really? Well he never caught my eye much at school; we were too busy hating each other. Though what I came to say was that I really should be getting home now, but thank you for the invite, I had a wonderful time." And Ginny wasn't lying; she really was enjoying Malfoy's company, though she wanted to get off the topic of Malfoy, dodging the subject slightly.

"Alright then," Mariana said, giving Ginny a kiss on the cheek, "I will see on you Monday." And as Ginny began to turn around and return to her table, Mariana added, "And don't think I didn't notice you _not_ mentioning your thoughts about Draco Malfoy now, Ginny. You may have not gotten along years ago, but this isn't Hogwarts anymore."

With that Ginny just smiled a little knowingly and didn't reply, making her way back to her table where Draco was waiting for her.

"Ready to go?" Draco asked as she reached their table.

"Yes, let's go."

Mariana was smiling and seemed to have a look of knowing on her face as she watched the two of them leave and grab their coats. Draco saw this as he was helping Ginny into hers and said, "Mariana seems very happy with herself. What was it you two talked about?"

"Oh she just finds you rather attractive," Ginny said offhandedly, smirking.

"Hmm," Draco said, rather pleased with himself and making sure to turn around to face her again, giving her a smile before following Ginny out of the hall.

Just a little reminder to voice any ideas you might have!


	2. Chapter 2

"Best chocolate cake in London indeed,"

Ginny raised her eyebrows and said, "I _know_ chocolate cake."

"You know, I had said coffee, not chocolate cake at 11 o'clock at night."

"Says the man drinking coffee at 11 o'clock at night," Ginny said, as Draco took another sip from his steaming cup.

"When you've consumed as much caffeine as I have during your lifetime, it starts to have no effect whatsoever. I can drink coffee at 3am and go to sleep 10 minutes later."

"That isn't really something to be proud of though is it? Its actually a bit of a bummer to not be able to rely on caffeine." Ginny said, swallowing her last bite of cake. Draco's piece lay untouched, save for 2 mouthfuls.

They were sitting in Calabria, a little café off a side street of Diagon Alley. One that Ginny visited at least 3 times a week. And one Draco had not known existed.

Draco merely shrugged and said, "So when I asked you to grab coffee you had no intention of actually ordering coffee did you? You had your eye on that cake all along,"

"As far as I'm concerned, coffee is only drunk first thing in the morning, and maybe again in the afternoon on a particularly grueling day. Cake, on the other hand, especially _this_ cake, can be eaten anytime," Ginny said with a smile.

Draco shook his head but laughed all the same. Ginny Weasley was really quite a character.

##

As they were leaving the café Ginny said, "I still can't believe you were willing to waste the rest of your perfectly good cake. You said yourself it was the best in London."

"It is. But I'm not bringing a half eaten cake home with me, and I'm sure as hell not going to eat a gigantic piece of cake this late at night. I'm still surprised you finished the rest of it though."

"It's criminal to throw away good cake, Malfoy," Ginny said simply, as if it put the matter to rest once and for all.

They turned towards each other, clearly both confused as to an appropriate way to end the evening, but both too wrapped up in thought to notice the other's discomfort.

"So I hope you'll have some kind words to say if Rudolfo asks about me," Draco said with a smirk.

"_If_ he asks," Ginny smiled in return.

Draco just laughed, nodded his head and said, "Well good night, Weasley."

"Good night, Malfoy,"

And they simultaneously pulled out their wands and Disapparated back to their apartments. Ginny Apparated into her foyer, changed, and quickly fell asleep, leaving no time to reflect on the night's bizarre events.

##

As was customary for Ginny on Sunday mornings, she met Hermione for brunch at Calabria, even after having just left the café 10 hours prior.

She was dressed in her casual Sunday attire, jeans, sweater and boots, topped off with a hand-knitted scarf courtesy of Molly Weasley.

As expected, Hermione was already seated at a table when Ginny arrived, and greeted her, momentarily taking her eyes off The Daily Prophet in front of her.

"Anything noteworthy in there?" Ginny asked, gesturing to the paper as she sat down.

"Just what you'd expect of a Sunday paper: arts, style, restaurant and book reviews, wedding announcements. No real news, but I guess no one wants to read anything too depressing on a Sunday morning do they?" Hermione replied as she folded the paper and set it aside, clearly disappointed in its contents.

Ginny ventured a guess that Hermione was exactly the type of person who would have liked to read depressing news even on Sundays.

"I sure don't, but I don't really read the paper anyway. So how was your week?" Ginny asked, as she flagged a waiter and placed their usual order.

"Pretty much what you'd expect from a roomful of wizards arguing over what laws should be changed and updated or why they should stay the way they are. Anyway, I wont bore you with it too much. How was your week?"

Hermione had once been met with blank stares and bored expressions (namely from Ron and Ginny) every time she discussed her work at the Law Development section of the Magical Law Enforcement Department at the Ministry. She now knew better than to talk about her work in too much detail around her friends.

"Usual mishaps, the contractors are a week behind schedule so there's still not much I can do, and Mariana and Rudolfo are still disagreeing over wall colors for the whole house, but we've _finally_ chosen and ordered all the kitchen appliances. So that's one room relatively done. Though you'd never guess who I ran into at _Life_'s anniversary party last night. _Malfoy,_" Ginny said dramatically.

"Malfoy? Draco _Malfoy_? Please tell me he didn't do anything too horrible," Hermione said sympathetically

"Surprisingly, no. He's trying to lobby Rudolfo into investing for something. And we actually had a pretty good time; we even went out for coffee afterwards."

The waiter returned with their food as she said this, and as the smell of her waffles wafted into her nose, Ginny realized just how hungry she was and dug in immediately.

"Coffee? In the middle of the night?" Hermione asked, as if they hadn't been interrupted.

"He had coffee. I had cake," and Hermione nodded knowingly, she really should have known Ginny would have cake, and not coffee.

"So you had a tolerable semi-date with Malfoy…" Hermione said, urging Ginny to continue.

"It wasn't a semi-date. And it wasn't tolerable, because it was actually… Enjoyable. Surprisingly," Ginny replied as she drunk her coffee, "_at an appropriate time," _she thought wryly, "We just talked and caught up. Though the whole thing was rather strange, but natural at the same time. I'm really just as surprised as you are about the whole thing, or maybe even more so."

"So Malfoy's really changed then,"

"I wouldn't say changed. I'd say, grown up," Ginny said after a bit of thought.

"Well I wouldn't have thought him capable of even that,"

Ginny laughed in reply and said, "Neither did I."

##

They finished the rest of their brunch with little more mention of Malfoy. Hermione guessed that Ginny didn't know what to make of their night either, and decided to halt her enquires. Still though, she suspected that this wasn't the last she'd heard of Malfoy, and was eager to question Ginny about him again soon.

As with brunch, visiting antique stores was part of her Sunday routine. Ginny had figured out that Sundays, in fact, was the best time to go antiquing. As the owners put out their newly acquired stock in time for Monday, visiting on Sundays insured that Ginny would have the first look at anything new.

"So would you like to come to Stonehouse with me?" Ginny asked once they were on the sidewalk outside.

Stonehouse Road was a narrow street filled end to end with 18th century stone houses selling all manner of antiques. It was a goldmine for an interior designer like Ginny, and one of the best-kept secrets of Ottery St Catchpole.

"No thanks, I thought I might stop by Ron's for a bit actually," Hermione replied.

"So how is my dear brother? I hope he's treating you alright. You know I can always have a word with him if he's being an arse."

Hermione laughed, and said "No, he's just being is usual, somewhat annoying self. But I'll definitely take you up on that in the future."

"Alright," Ginny smiled, "Tell Ron I say hi," turning towards Quality Quidditch Supplies, intent on browsing the new racing brooms, as Hermione spun and Disapparated.

##

Stonehouse Road failed to wield any spectacular finds that weekend, though Ginny was extremely pleased with the goblin-carved crystal fruit bowl she had found for Mariana.

Wandering the cobbled street of Stonehouse Road gave Ginny's mind no choice but to ponder the previous night's strange events, from finding Malfoy at the party to their pleasant conversations.

It wasn't that she was romantically interested in him "_sure, he was a looker,_" she thought, and he could carry a pretty decent conversation, but Draco Malfoy was cocky. It was in a way that made her roll her eyes partly in humor, but also partly in disbelief that such a man actually existed.

And why was he suddenly warm towards her? He did seem genuinely sincere. Was the explanation really as simple as that he had grown up?

The bottom line was that she still couldn't figure him out and was frustrated at her mind's incapability to stop dwelling on the thought.

In an attempt to preoccupy herself on something else, Ginny decided to stop by The Burrow and visit her parents. Surely her mum would insist she stay for dinner afterwards. After all, Ginny did miss her mother's cooking.

##

The next morning, Ginny sleepily walked out of her bedroom still in her pajamas, thinking, "_Ah, the perks of having the office at home,"_ and proceeded to grab some cereal.

Ginny's apartment was a modest two-bedroom, one of which she had converted into an office. As she worked alone and was frequently on-site during projects, she didn't need a separate office to work in, and actually found her apartment to be more than enough space.

She dressed promptly, eager to show Mariana her new _Stonehouse_ find, and heard the distinctive tapping of an owl's beak on her window.

She was met with a handsome ebony owl she had never seen before. Unrolling the parchment tied to his leg, Ginny offered him an owl treat - which he so rudely declined - and read.

_Weasley,_

_Meet me at 5 for a piece of cake at Calabria and you can tell me all about Rudolfo._

_Malfoy_

"_Well that was straight to the point,_" Ginny thought. No bullshit. Just like Draco.

#

A/N Thanks to all those who reviewed! I've now abled anonymous reviews so the rest of you have no excuse! Anyway, this may seem like a strange place to end the chapter, what with the day just starting and all. And it is a short chapter, but I thought the letter was a good place to end. I now know a little more of where I'd like the story to go, and that should be apparent in the next chapter or two. I really don't think a relationship between those two (friendship or otherwise) can develop in a short period of time, so for now, at least, the story won't be moving too incredibly fast. But we'll see how it goes as time progresses :)


	3. Chapter 3

Before Ginny could reply, the handsome owl had flown out her window and into the early morning sky. "_Figures Malfoy wouldn't wait for a reply," _she thought wryly and Apparated to Mariana and Rudolfo's townhouse – her new crystal bowl in tow.

The townhouse was a magnificent mid 19th century brownstone. It had 4 floors, magnificent floor to ceiling windows, original moldings, and everything from a basement to a backyard. In short, it was Ginny's dream house. But as she could not currently afford such an extravagant house - and lets face it, she didn't need the space - she was just happy to have been the one chosen to decorate it.

From the exterior, the brownstone showed no signs of a renovation taking place, but once Ginny stepped through the front door, the familiar hustle and bustle of a construction site welcomed her.

Wandering through the house in search of Mariana, Ginny wound up bumping into her old housemate, Seamus Finnigan, architect of the project.

Since leaving Hogwarts, Seamus Finnigan had founded his own architecture firm, which was now one of the most prestigious in England. His success is in part due to his unique style; his works were not simply walls and a roof over you head, no, a Finnigan original made you feel as though you were living in a piece of sculpture. There really was no other way to describe it.

"Ginny!" He called out, glad to have found her, "I just heard about the construction delay and came out here for a stern word to the builders. They're blaming it on the late shipment of materials, but agreed to work twice as fast to make up for lost time. So I'm sorry, I know you can't get started once all this," gesturing around him, "is gone."

"Oh, no problem, don't worry about it, Seamus," Ginny said with a dismissing hand wave. "Mariana and Rudolfo are still having difficulty seeing eye to eye, so even with all _this_", mimicking his gesture around their surroundings, "gone, I still won't get started for another week at least."

Seamus seemed to ease the tension in his shoulders as Ginny spoke, but before he could relax too much, Ginny started again in an accusatory tone.

"But more importantly, where were _you_ on Saturday? I'd been counting on you to be at the _Life_ party! I spent the first half of it drinking alone, and the second half of it in the company of Draco Malfoy." Ginny neglected to point out that she had in fact enjoyed Draco's company, as she was trying to guilt Seamus for leaving her alone. At least for the first half of the party.

"Malfoy was there? What was he doing there?" Seamus asked, surprised. At the mention of Draco's name, there was a flicker of jealousy in Seamus' eye, but in an instant it was replaced with a charming smile. "Sorry, Gin, I got called away to Paris at the last minute for a project, otherwise you know I would've been there. I guess I'll have to make it up by taking you to dinner then."

Ginny returned the smile and said, "Guess you will,"

"It's a date. Tonight then, 8 o'clock? I'll pick you up."

"Great," she said, just as someone called Seamus' name, flashing Ginny another smile and leaving her with a giddy smile on her face.

She mentally shook herself and went to find Mariana, though still unable to compose herself fully – she was still wearing a big silly grin - when she found her.

"Ginny, there you are. My, aren't you having a wonderful morning? I wish I could say the same about mine, these delays sure are making a right mess of everything. Anyway, what has you to happy this morning? You must tell me everything."

Mariana Kingston was a tall forty-something woman who always held herself with grace. She always dressed in the most fashionable clothes, and had one of the most easy-going personalities Ginny knew. She could strike up a conversation about anything with anyone, and was somewhat of a mother figure to Ginny. But as Ginny hated talking about her love life to anyone (it was _her_ love life after all), she deflected the question. She had been hoping for a date with Seamus for a while now, and wasn't going to let anything get in the way of it.

"I was just excited to show you this gorgeous crystal bowl I found at _Stonehouse_ yesterday," handing the wrapped package to Mariana, "I know we still haven't picked out furniture, let alone accents for any of the rooms, but I couldn't resist when I saw this bowl, and I just knew it wouldn't last long."

Mariana gasped as she laid her eyes on the bowl, glittering lights dancing on its multi-faceted surface, "Ginny, this is amazing! I still have no idea how you're able to find such amazing items, and you do have such great taste. Thank you, darling!"

"Well I'm glad you like it,"

"I do. I absolutely love it," Mariana said with grin almost as wide as Ginny's. Almost.

##

At 5:15 that evening, Ginny walked into Calabria to find Draco tapping his foot impatiently at their previous table, with 2 slices of the decadent chocolate cake in front of him. And a coffee mug.

"You're late Weasley,"

"Well its nice to see you too Malfoy. Tell me, how was your day?"

"I was beginning to think you weren't going to show up," Draco stated, choosing not to answer her question.

"We can't all be CEO's of Malfoy Inc. and turn up to work and leave whenever we want to."

"I'll have you know what I am at work before half the office has even arrived. And as for leaving early, well, who the hell's gonna stop me?" smirked Draco.

Ginny rolled her eyes and picked up a slice of cake, "For me? Thanks. Though you better finish yours because I am not eating two slices of cake tonight."

"Oh don't worry, I'll finish it. Though if you're not careful I might just eat yours too."

Ginny snorted and mumbled "Fat chance," as she took another bite.

##

"So what do you want to know about Rudolfo?"

"Everything. While I do love the cat and mouse game, I'd like it to end in the foreseeable future."

"Well from your stunt on Saturday night, I'd say you're already well on your way. Needless to say there isn't a shortage of companies who'd like do to business with him, and all who would make great investments. But the ones he chooses, are ones for a cause he supports, or run by people he supports."

Draco looked considerably more interested in the conversation now, he had expected to tiptoe around the topic with pointless small talk before getting down to business.

"He knows how influential he can be," Ginny continued, "So he likes to have the personal connection. And while getting personally involved may not sound like a great business strategy, he's Rudolfo Kingston. He can do whatever the fuck he wants."

"So in short, I have to make him like me," Draco asked with his eyebrows raised.

"Well yes, and no. I know how manipulative you can be Malfoy, actually all Slytherins are manipulative. Or, wait, I'm sorry, you prefer _cunning_," Ginny added when Draco opened his mouth to interrupt. "But Rudolfo can spot deceit from a mile away. To this day I've never been able to lie to the man."

Draco looked to be deep in thought, carefully taking her advice into consideration. He was thankful he had not yet resorted to his more, dirtier tricks, shall we say.

"Rudolfo pays attention to the littlest details about everything and everyone, and he appreciates the trait in others. So don't overlook the details, and be genuine. Rudolfo seems to already like you, so you're on the right track."

"I'm guessing that's why you're helping me then? You wouldn't go around telling the man's secrets to just anyone now would you?"

Ginny nodded, "Though I am glad he was at the office today, because honestly Malfoy, I still have no idea what I'd say about you if he asks."

Malfoy said nothing and smirked. Though the smirk really said all there was to say.

##

"There. Finished. All gone," Draco said as he dropped his fork on the plate.

"Well, I have to say, I didn't think you had it in you." Ginny said, when her stomach suddenly rumbled.

"You're hungry already? After that gigantic piece of cake?" Draco asked, astonished.

"I finished mine earlier than you. What time is it by the way?"

They had lost track of time, which seemed to happen every time they talked, Ginny thought.

"It's 7:30."

"7:30? Shit! I have a dinner and I haven't gotten ready yet!" She said as she grabbed her bag and made to stand up.

"A dinner _date?_" Draco asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"Yes, a dinner _date_, Malfoy." Ginny replied irritably. She was late as it is and Malfoy was not letting her leave.

"Well who is the lucky guy?" he asked as he leaned back in his chair with a smirk.

"Seamus Finnigan. He's Mariana and Rudolfo's architect."

Draco smirked at the name but didn't comment. "Well, I wouldn't want to keep the man waiting, but we still have plenty of matters to discuss about Rudolfo."

"Fuck. Ummm, alright. I'm home all day Wednesdays. You can floo me anytime then and we'll finish our conversation. Thanks again for the cake," She said as she sped off for the door, not giving a chance for Malfoy to reply and leaving him alone at the table.

##

"Hi! Come in, come in. I'm running a little bit behind so if you wouldn't mind waiting just a little bit while I finish getting ready," Ginny said as she opened the door, barefooted, to a superbly dressed Seamus Finnigan.

"Evening. Sure no problem, we can be a little late for our reservation."

Ginny was frantically trying to find matching purse and shoes for the simple blue dress she was wearing. She had literally just finished putting on her makeup when Seamus rang the doorbell.

"You look amazing. And I like what you've done with the place," Seamus said with a charming smile, gesturing around the apartment as she exited her room.

"Well aren't you full of compliments tonight?" Ginny laughed, "So where are we going for dinner?"

"Seeing as I have a lot to make up for, " looking at her purposefully, to which Ginny just smiled, "I thought I'd better pull out all the stops. Including these," as he pulled out the white lilies he had hidden behind his back. In her haste, Ginny had not noticed he had kept his hand behind his back the whole time.

"I asked around and found out they're your favourite."

"They are! Thank you, Seamus," proceeding to put the blooming flowers in a vase, "But you never answered my question."

"Ah, but that is a surprise," and again he flashed her another one of his charming smiles. They always did make her melt a little every time.

##

"Chartres. You got us a reservation at _Chartres_," Ginny said in amazement as she stepped through the elegant restaurant. Arguably the most expensive – and booked – restaurant in wizarding London.

"My firm handled their architecture," Seamus said with a little bit of smug, "I can always get a reservation here."

"Well remind me to name-drop your name next time I want a reservation," Ginny said, still wide-eyed and taking in her surroundings through the eyes of a child in a candy store.

Seamus merely laughed as the maitre d' led them to their table.

#

A/N Since this story is about Ginny and Draco, I decided to not include Ginny's date with Seamus. Sorry this update came so late, my internet was being shit, anyway, with college starting I'm not sure how fast I'll be able to make future updates. But not for a lack of trying right?


	4. Chapter 4

Wednesday morning came before Ginny knew it as she scrambled out of bed later than anyone ever should on a weekday. Wednesday was the one day a week that she was able to not set an alarm to wake up to. Sometimes this worked out fine, as waking up at 6 every other day has adjusted her body to wake up at that time. Other times, it didn't work out so well. Today being the case, she groaned as she looked at the time. 10:30am. _Brilliant_.

On her way to the bathroom to take a much needed long, hot shower, Ginny's eyes landed on the vase of lilies from Seamus, and as happened the day before, she couldn't stop smiling as they reminded her of her amazing date.

Seamus had been the perfect gentleman the entire night. _"And to think I never gave a second thought about him throughout Hogwarts. I actually even dated his best friend…"_ Throughout the night Seamus was approached by several of the patrons who admired his work on the restaurant. But aside from the slight interruptions, they were able to talk freely about their Hogwarts days, construction and design, and their plans for the Kingston townhouse. All in all, Ginny couldn't have asked for a better first date.

##

With her thoughts on a strong pick-me-up coffee she walked out of her bathroom wrapped in a towel, and another perched on her head Ginny screamed when she saw Malfoy sitting on her couch, calmly reading one of her muggle fashion magazines.

"Malfoy! What the _fuck_? How did you get in here?" Flushed, Ginny hung on to the towel covering her a little tighter.

"I flooed, like you said. If you think I was going to kneel in front of a fireplace all day you've got another thing coming," Malfoy said calmly, as if he had not just entered her home unannounced.

"I'm helping _you_! I'm not going to be the one to floo you. And besides, you didn't have to turn up here like this. You could've flooed and waited to be _invited_ before barging into somebody's apartment!"

"I did! I waited for 30 bloody minutes. You do take incredibly long showers."

Ginny took a deep breath to calm herself and said, "Fine. Make yourself useful and make a pot of coffee won't you, Malfoy, while I change into something a little more suitable for _company_," walking into her bedroom.

Malfoy was making himself at home in Ginny's kitchen, fixing them both a cup of coffee and scoured her fridge for something to eat when she exited the bedroom, fully dressed.

"It doesn't take you much to feel welcome in somebody's house does it Malfoy?"

"While I'm here I may as well see if you have anything to eat, right? I've been up since dawn and haven't had anything to eat since then. I'm starving," Draco replied, while still trying to find something to eat in her cupboards.

"Oh, here, I'll make us some pancakes, huh? They only take a second to make, but you'll have to help me. No way am I doing all the work while you just sit there, Malfoy," Ginny said as she grabbed a box of crackers out of Draco's hands, which he immediately took back and started eating.

"I wouldn't dream of it, Weasley," Draco said with a playful smirk as he handed her her cup of coffee. "All right then, what do I have to do?"

Ginny took a sip of her coffee, savoring the warmth of the cup in her hands, and nearly choked. "How do you drink _this_? It's as if you put the whole bag into the coffee maker!" It was possibly the strongest cup of coffee Ginny had ever tasted in her life. And that includes the days leading up to her NEWT exams. Which is saying something.

"If you're gonna make coffee, you better do it right," Draco replied simply, taking a sip out of his own cup. "_This_ is how coffee is supposed to taste."

"Not my coffee, its not. This is going to burn a hole through your stomach and take a year off your life with each sip," Ginny said simply, throwing out what amounted to about half the cup and filling it back up with milk. Draco merely laughed, shook his head in disbelief, and proceeded to refill his cup.

##

Draco proved to be of valuable help in making their breakfast. Ginny had expected him to whine and make excuses for having to do menial tasks (as Ron would have done). Instead though, he was actually very eager to help. Though this may have had more to do with his hunger than actual desire to help Ginny.

And so they sat at Ginny's table, eagerly digging into their pancakes, when the subject of Draco's invitation to the _Life_ anniversary party arose.

"And you say you're not manipulative?" Ginny asked, eyebrows raised

"I stand by what I said," Draco answered, and continued to explain. "You know when you do your Christmas shopping, there's always one person that's the most difficult to buy for. So you settle for some horrible gift that you pretty much know they won't like, and wrap it up in fancy paper, topped with an extravagant bow that's better than all the rest. You do this partly to soothe your own guilt, but also partly to distract the person from realizing just how shitty your gift was. Let's just say I'm a master gift wrapper," he finished with a smirk.

There was a slight pause while Ginny tried to figure out whether or not he was joking. She burst out laughing only to stop a few seconds later when she realized he was, indeed, very serious. "Oh my god, you're serious."

"I'm dead serious."

"But that's cheating! You're cheating people out of thousands and thousands of galleons in your business deals. You're flat out lying to them!" Ginny exclaimed, outraged.

"No. I never lie." Draco answered seriously. "I'm an optimist. I look on the bright side," he finished with another smirk.

At this Ginny couldn't help but laugh at his nonchalance and confidence.

"You'll see, I'm really a very good _optimist_," Draco said with a meaningful eyebrow raise.

Still laughing, Ginny replied, "Honestly, I'm really not sure I want to."

At which Draco's answer was merely another smirk.

Though a second later he turned serious and said, "I don't want you to get the wrong idea about Rudolfo though. I'm not optimizing anything with this business deal I'm pushing."

Ginny had to stifle a laugh at the word optimizing, after recognizing the seriousness of his words.

"Look, I'm not worried about Rudolfo. Like I said, the man has a bullshit detector like no other," Ginny said earnestly. Rudolfo knew what he was doing, so it's not as though Ginny had to look out for him. Plus, as odd as it was to say considering their history, Draco did genuinely seemed to be, well, genuine.

"Good, I'm glad. And now, that we're fully satiated by these pancakes – which, by the way, who knew I possessed such skills in the kitchen? – I'd appreciate your thoughts on how I'm going to approach Rudolfo and finally get the ball rolling on this deal."

####

A/N: So it has literally been a year since I uploaded chapter 3. Which is outrageous and totally unacceptable, and I really have no plausible excuse. So if you still have this story on your alerts and have come back, thank you for not abandoning the story even though it may seem as though I had. If you're just reading it for the first time, well, be glad you didn't start reading it last year instead! This chapter is a little short, but I just wanted to get the ball rolling again and get into the groove of things. Once again, if you were one of the original readers, shall we say, do leave me a review to tell me that you haven't abandoned Out of the Blue!


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